Safari 5.1 offers users protection against malware via sandboxing

Mac users, if you have not updated to the new OS X Lion yet, perhaps it’s time that you did, especially if web security is a huge concern of yours. It seems that along with the new hardware refreshes of the MacBook Air and the Mac Mini, and the release of OS X Lion, Apple has also been busy rolling out updates to some of their software, such as their web browser, Safari, which has been updated to 5.1

Along with the 5.1 update to Safari came about sandboxing technology which is said to protect OS X Lion users from web-based exploits that may try to infect them with malware. Chrome users already have sandboxing technology in their browser, but for users who prefer using Safari, it looks like that technology may have come to you, making it the second browser to feature sandboxing.

The reason why you would have to upgrade to OS X Lion is because the sandboxing used in Safari 5.1 is only available on Apple’s latest operating system. With malware being rather rampant these days, especially on Android devices, it’s not surprising to see companies taking a step in adding defenses such as sandboxing in their software.